Companies ready for flexible working

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Most companies are already well-prepared for flexible working and need not worry about the Work and Families Act kicking in today.

According to Cisco's security market manager Mik Stevens, most companies - small and large - are already able to offer flexible working to their employees.

And they'll need to be. As previously reported by IT PRO, the new Work and Families Act comes into play today, requiring companies to provide flexible working options to anyone with a "caring responsibility" - such as those with young children or caring for dependant adults.

"Most don't realise how close they are to offering flexible working," said Stevens. "A lot of organisations are a relatively long way down the path to doing this." He said internet connectivity - ubiquitous across most firms, regardless of sector - is the "first tick in the box companies need."

For most, ensuring employees have access without compromising security will be the key issue. "Preparedness is a balance of them allowing access to their resources and controlling access," he said.

As they already have the IT infrastructure in place, many companies won't have to invest much to keep up with the new regulations. "A lot of companies, even small ones, won't have a huge investment to make," he said, adding that beefing up security and scaling communications will be the extent of what most companies' investment - they may even save money by cutting back on office space.

Some sectors are better prepared than others, however. IT firms are well-ahead of the curve, said Stevens. "For the last ten years, I've always worked remotely," he said.

Sectors such as manufacturing, retail and the public sector may be further behind others, he warned. As manufacturing and retail work involves so much hands-on work, many firms in that sector can't easily offer flexible working, while the size of some public sector organisations makes implementing such changes difficult. "There are exceptions to the rule," Stevens said. "Some local councils have done a lot of work in this area, but many haven't done much."

But firms with large numbers of office-based workers will likely face few technical troubles allowing flexible working arrangements, as the IT infrastructure is already in place - as any business traveller well knows.

Indeed, the main challenge isn't technology, said Stevens, but culture. "In a traditional workspace, you're sat at your desk," he said. "At Cisco, the majority don't have a desk of their own anymore."

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